Chapter Forty-Two: The Dungeon Opens, Treasure Chest Battle?

Enhanced items!

Gu Lang recalled his encounter with the Zombie Queen. The bandit leader Wang Ping’an and others had spread rumors that the Zombie Queen possessed a treasure chest. It was said to boost the strength of survivors—a perfect supplement for the Chosen. Yet, after subduing the Zombie Queen, Gu Lang had never seen such a chest. Even when he questioned the Zombie Queen, she professed no knowledge of it.

Never would he have imagined that today, in Dawn City, the treasure chest would appear again!

Could it be that this thing was also some sort of item, a special boon for the Chosen?

“Lord Gu Lang! Besides the three great families, there are several smaller, scattered clans in Dawn City. They, too, have Silver-ranked powerhouses. Though insignificant, it seems they’ve caught wind of this and are on the move. Shouldn’t we make more preparations?” Old Zhao from the Zhao family whispered a reminder.

Gu Lang grinned broadly—he’d been fretting over the lack of opportunities to grow stronger. Now these Silver survivors were practically delivering themselves to his door.

“Let’s go! Follow me to the city center!”

With a wave, Gu Lang led his harem out of the safe zone. The moment they stepped outside, the system issued a new task.

[Congratulations, Host, for triggering a new mission. Your strength has grown; it's time to encounter what adults should see—the Apocalypse Instances and Doomsday Items! In certain special periods, areas dense with zombies will form fixed rewards. Around the treasure chest, hordes of zombies and powerful monsters will spawn—these are called Instances. Drop rates are increased within instance zones, but so is danger. Your task: seize the Golden Treasure Chest!]

[Mission Reward: 30 Free Attribute Points!]

Well now! There really are instances?

Gu Lang was thrilled—these instances seemed made just for him. Who in Dawn City could surpass him now?

Still, he wouldn’t let his guard down. He beckoned, and his wives formed a protective circle around him. Though powerful, there were still Gold-ranked beings out there. If a Gold zombie happened by, he could end up in dire straits.

Soon, they arrived at the central supermarket. All around, zombies crowded the landscape, their skin a vivid red—clearly, they’d been enhanced.

“Li Muwan! Wenwen! Zombie Queen! Stay close to me. The rest of you, be ready to assist and rescue at any time!”

Gu Lang activated his Firearms Mastery skill. A massive Gatling gun materialized in his hands.

Firearms Mastery could manifest any weapon the user had seen—the more powerful the weapon, the greater the ammunition, and the more stamina it consumed.

The Gatling was currently one of the strongest weapons Gu Lang could imagine.

“Let’s do this!”

Without wasting words, Gu Lang squeezed the trigger. The Gatling roared, bullets pouring out like a raging storm. The zombies blocking their path were instantly shredded into pulp.

…

On the other side of the central supermarket, abutting the southeast of Dawn City, opposite the direction of the three great families, another group rapidly approached.

At their head was a young, muscular man, veins bulging, wielding a serrated broadsword.

“Heh! Heaven never seals off all roads. Our family was just fretting over how to handle the corpse tide in the apocalypse, and now a Golden Chest appears! I hear the three great families are at each other’s throats—maybe we can fish in troubled waters!”

The young man’s eyes shone with greed.

Beside him, a young woman shook her head. “Brother, you’d best be careful. Sure, we’re both Silver-ranked—strong by apocalypse standards—but that’s just luck from taking those pills! If we run into real Silver elites, we might not win.”

The man scoffed, brimming with pride. “Xiao Yun, what’s there to fear? Our family has plenty of those pills. We just can’t take too many at once, or there are side effects—otherwise, I’d have become Gold by now!”

“But remember—never let this secret slip, or it’ll mean the end for our family!”

Xiao Yun nodded silently. The group drew ever closer to the supermarket.

…

In yet another direction, another team advanced. Leading them was a dark-skinned, wiry old man, yellow teeth bared in a grin as he gazed at the supermarket.

“A Golden Chest! Surely this is a gift from the heavens. No matter what, I must lay hands on it this time. After all, I was lucky enough to win a Silver Chest once!”

Though only Silver-ranked, the old man wielded a blade of deep blue, which hovered in the air, crackling with electricity—a weapon worthy of the gods.

Beside him was a dwarfish figure—a child at first glance, but on closer inspection, a person with dwarfism.

“Old Ma! Silver Chests are rare enough in this world. You already got lucky and drew a Lightning Blade. Isn’t that enough? How about you let me have the chest this time?”

The dwarf was also Silver-ranked, but unarmed.

“Dream on! This time, it’s every brother for himself. If you can seize the chest, I’ll yield it to you!”

Old Ma grinned widely. All around, teams from every direction began to converge on the supermarket.

…

“Swish, swish, swish!”

Li Muwan spread her hands, showering the battlefield with ice spikes that fell like rain among the zombie horde. Any zombie they touched instantly rotted and fell apart.

The Zombie Queen extended her razor-sharp claws, spinning like a top to sweep the field. Dozens of zombies were sliced into segments in the blink of an eye—the scene was gruesome indeed.

Behind them, Gu Lang’s face was alight with glee.

“Damn, just a few hundred zombies slain and I’ve already got 20 attribute points? This damned system wasn’t lying—the drop rate must be up by tenfold!”

Gu Lang found himself growing increasingly fond of these instances. But he wasn’t naive—instances were meant to attract competitors. He didn’t believe he was the only one who knew.

Sure enough, after a while, they came upon a corpse—but it wasn’t a zombie; it was a male survivor, a bullet wound in his chest.

Li Muwan examined the body, frowning. “Lord Gu Lang, this is a sniper bullet! There’s someone here—someone skilled at ambush!”

Julie snorted coldly. “Don’t worry, little brother. Don’t forget, I have a skill that can provide you all with shields. As long as a shot doesn’t kill you outright, we can strike back!”

Gu Lang’s expression grew grave. “Looks like someone beat us here. From now on, no more gunfire—move carefully!”

Just then, a beastly roar rang out from the top floor of the supermarket, echoing in all directions.

A bestial sound, mixing the cry of lion and leopard, sent a chill down everyone’s spine.

All eyes turned upward—a massive figure slowly emerged. It was a zombie, its body sheathed in greenish hide, standing over twenty meters tall. From the rooftop, it loomed over the city like a giant descended from the heavens, gazing hungrily at the world below.

“BOSS!”